This invention relates in general to body and frame assemblies for vehicles. More specifically, this invention relates to an improved structure for such a vehicle body and frame assembly that includes a structure that is capable of absorbing energy in a controlled manner during a collision, thereby providing additional safety to the occupants of the vehicle.
Many land vehicles in common use, such as automobiles, vans, and trucks, include a body and frame assembly that is supported upon a plurality of ground-engaging wheels by a resilient suspension system. The structures of known body and frame assemblies can be divided into two general categories, namely, separate and unitized. In a typical separate body and frame assembly, the structural components of the body portion and the frame portion of the vehicle are separate and independent from one another. When assembled, the frame portion of the assembly is resiliently supported upon the vehicle wheels by the suspension system and serves as a platform upon which the body portion of the assembly and other components of the vehicle can be mounted. Separate body and frame assemblies of this general type are found in most older vehicles, but remain in common use today for many relatively large or specialized use modern vehicles, such as large vans, sport utility vehicles, and trucks. In a typical unitized body and frame assembly, the structural components of the body portion and the frame portion are combined into an integral unit that is resiliently supported upon the vehicle wheels by the suspension system. Unitized body and frame assemblies of this general type are found in many relatively small modern vehicles, such as automobiles and minivans.
A recent trend in the development of passenger, sport utility, pickup truck, and other vehicles has been to design the various components of the vehicle in such a manner as to absorb energy during a collision, thereby providing additional safety to the occupants of the vehicle. As a part of this trend, it is known to design portions of the vehicle body and frame assembly so as to be at least partially collapsible during a collision so as to absorb to energy. To accomplish this, it is known to form such portions of the vehicle body and frame assembly to have corrugated or similarly deformed shapes that are somewhat weaker than the other non-deformed portions of the vehicle body and frame assembly. During a collisions, such deformed portions are designed to be the first portions of the vehicle body and frame assembly that are axially collapsed. Thus, the absorption of energy during a collision occurs in a somewhat controlled manner. A variety of such pre-deformed axially collapsible vehicle body and frame assembly structures are known in the art. Nonetheless, it would be desirable to provide an improved structure for a vehicle body and frame assembly including a structure that is capable of absorbing energy in a controlled manner during a collision, thereby providing additional safety to the occupants of the vehicle. In particular, it would also be desirable to provide such an energy absorbing structure that is replaceable after a collision.